Three things to look out for against Sunderland

West Ham face struggling Sunderland this Saturday in a game which should be a comfortable win for the Hammers. But we have looked anything but comfortable this season. Here are three things to look out for…

Consistency in performances

West Ham have taken four points out of the last six after losing four games in a row in the Premier League. We knew that we could not repeat the performances from our first six games again and that we would pick up form soon enough. It appears that our confidence is coming back but can we be consistent in our performances?

Yes, the result is the most important part but given that we’re at home, to last-placed Sunderland, this is the perfect opportunity for the players to put on a show. With only two points from eight games Sunderland have not looked threatening at all this season. We currently average 1.125 goals a game and it’s about time we started to see us completely dominate a team.

Early changes and the starting xi

It’s clear to all that West Ham have been struggling in the Premier League but could Slaven Bilic take a risk and rest some players? We know that the EFL Cup is our best chance at winning a trophy (alongside the FA Cup) and we do face Chelsea on Wednesday and then Everton that same weekend. It would be a huge risk given our performances this season and the fact that we do not know what we will get out of the team. Should we go up comfortably it would be no surprise to see key players taken off early.

Goals for Simone Zaza

Zaza has played for West Ham six times this season but has not scored a single goal. Bilic said after the game against Crystal Palace that Zaza was “different class” and he told him that “this is the Zaza I know from Italy, the goals will come”.

Nobody could fault Zaza’s work-rate on the pitch and movement against Crystal Palace but he did make some poor decisions. With the players behind him now playing well and creating more chances we could see a goal for Zaza on Saturday against a team that has already conceded 15 goals this season. With Andre Ayew back in full training Zaza needs to take his chance, and quick.

My prediction? 2-0.